NPL Victoria
What a round of NPL action it was! Okay, it may have just been like any other standard round, with most of the favourites winning their clashes (South Melbourne, Bentleigh, Knights, Hume, Heidelberg) with clean sheets to boot, a token upset (Gully seeing off Oakleigh), star strikers featuring on the scoresheet (Lujic, Barisic, Thurtell, Sanders), and Josep Gombau making an appearance at the humble surrounds of George Andrews Reserve.
Melbourne Knights 2 (Barisic 46′, Uskok 70′) defeated Northcote City 0 at Knights Stadium
After a slow start against Avondale last round, the Knights raced out of the block this week. The hosts should have had the lead when Barisic played Zahra through on goal, but the latter’s strike was hit straight at an advancing Theodoridis. Barisic did make Melbourne’s pressure pay seconds after half time however, pouncing on an underhit backpass to slot past the ‘keeper. Uskok sealed the contest with a strong header from Dao’s corner kick.
Port Melbourne 2 (Ibrahim 48’, Oppermann 69’) defeated Pascoe Vale 0 at JL Murphy Reserve
Pascoe Vale will be wondering how they didn’t take the lead in the first half, with an avalanche of chances on goal yielding nothing. Part of this was down to Stjepan Gal, who denied both Jake Nakic’s strike and Michael Ferrante’s powerful free-kick, before the latter had another set piece that rattled the bar. The second half was a different story, with Kamal Ibrahim teaching the visitors a lesson in finishing from distance, while then also teeing up Opperman for a close range header to seal the contest.
Green Gully 1 (Sanders 85’) defeated Oakleigh Cannons 0 at Green Gully Reserve
This will go down as a famous victory for Gully against Miron Bleiberg’s Oakleigh Cannons, who had to contend with Rinor Muriqi and Amadu Koromas’ injuries in the first half, along with Roddy Vargas’s second yellow in the 82nd minute, before scoring the winner in the 85th minute. It came via club stalwart Matt Sanders, who finished off Aaron Cohen’s marauding dribble past two players and a pinpoint cross into the box.
North Geelong 0 defeated by South Melbourne 3 (Stirton 31’, Lujic 40’, Brennan 83’) at Elcho Park
This contest could have produced a different narrative had North Geelong converted one of their early chances, including Juso Julardzija’s effort that grazed the post in the second minute. South Melbourne were the more clinical side thereafter, with David Stirton nodding home the first goal after half an hour, Milos Lujic slamming home a loose ball in the 40th minute, and Andy Brennan capping the game off in the 80th minute, punishing a spirited North Geelong side that toiled hard all day for no reward.
Dandenong Thunder 1 (Korcari 20’) defeated by Bentleigh Greens 2 (Thurtell 37’, 81’) at George Andrews Reserve
Watched on by Adelaide United coach Josep Gombau, a youthful Dandenong Thunder stunned the more fancied visitors in the 20th minute, when club favourite Veton Korcari picked up the ball unmarked on the edge of the 18 yard box and fired past Alistair Bray. Bentligh rallied, equalising in the 35th minute via Matt Thurtell, who was found in the box by Visevic after a long switch by Jack Webster.
The latter’s dismissal in the 77th minute for a second yellow card opened the door for Dandenong, but Thurtell slammed it shut with his second goal via a Dion Kirk cross. Mother nature must have been a fan of Thunder, because the ensuing storm in the 85th minute caused a blackout and forced the match to be abandoned, with an FFV review deeming the result will stand.
Hume City 2 (Ingham 79’, Hegarty 90’) defeated Avondale FC 0 at Broadmeadows Valley Park
A goal looked incredibly unlikely at Broadmeadows on Sunday afternoon as a dogged Avondale defence repelled Hume’s attacking forays, much like Hume kept out Avondale’s advances. In the closing stages of the contest, something changed, and a classy solo effort from former Brisbane Roar winger Jai Ingham broke the deadlock with just 10 minutes left on the clock. He then burst forward with support from skipper Nick Hegarty and the Englishman made no mistakes when played through, rounding the keeper and slotting cooly into the back of the net for a comprehensive 2-0 scoreline.
Werribee City FC 0 defeated by Heidelberg United 1 (Cartanos 80’) at Galvin Park
A dogged Werribee City almost held off Heidelberg for the full 90 minutes. Last week’s hero Daniel Vasilevski couldn’t repeat his long-distace scoring feats early, denied by the crossbar in the 14th minute. There were concerned murmurs from the away supporters as key striker Kaine Sheppard trudged off in the 27th with an injury. The visitors kept mounting pressure on the hosts, and inspired substitute Andrew Cartanos scored the winner in the 80th minute after finding space in the box.
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NPL 1 East
Murray United 1 (Rixon) drew with Springvale White Eagles 1 (De Rito) at La Trobe University
Murray United looked set for a debut win in the NPL 1 East, but a resilient White Eagles managed to snatch an equaliser with just over 10 minutes to play. Kade Rixon managed to emulate the efforts of Trent Rixon, with his goal on the hour mark, with a cool, calm and ultimately clinical finish to give the hosts the lead. Springvale pushed and found their equaliser through Hernan de Rito; a beautifully struck free-kick the remedy the visitors needed.
Eastern Lions 3 (Ajao, Beamish, Nzadzayo) defeated Nunawading City 1 (Giannopolous) at Gardiners Creek Reserve
Eastern Lions proved too good for fellow NPL 1 East new boys Nunawading City as they triumphed 3-1 at Gardiners Creek Reserve. The goals were evenly spread, as Philip Ajao added the first on 10 minutes to take his season tally to two. Mitchell Beamish and Munyaradzi Nzadzayo made it an unassailable 3-0 lead, with Nunawading’s only respite a late goal to substitute Anthony Giannopolous who was aided by the post with his effort.
Kingston City 3 (Konstantinidis x 2, Stavridis) defeated Box Hill United 2 (Porcaro, Thiakane) at The Grange Reserve
Stelios Konstantinidis continued his blistering start to the NPL 1 East season with a second successive brace, this time, it lead Kingston City to a 3-2 win over Box Hill and a place at the summit of the ladder. Konstantinidis’ goals both came within the opening 15 minutes, the first a raking strike from distance, the second a mazing run and cool finish. Seb Barrero finished well inside the area to pull one back before George Stavridis headed home to restore the two goal buffer. Patrick Thiakane give the visitors a sniff with his wonder goal but the comeback never eventuated.
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NPL 1 West
It was a week of draws in the West side of the NPL 1 competition, with six of the eight teams on display over the weekend unable to be separated. The Zebras and Georgies shared four goals evenly, while Bulleen and Bendigo both kept their unbeaten starts to the league intact with a 1-1 scoreline. Whittlesea and Ballarat enjoyed a stalemate of the ‘bore’ variety while the round’s only victory saw Moreland City triumph away from home to Brunswick City in their local derby.
Sunshine George Cross 2 (Oghanna, Mason) drew with Moreland Zebras 2 (Nikolic, Charalambous) at Chaplin Reserve
It was a strong comeback by the hosts that earned Sunshine George Cross an equal share at the top of the ladder, as fought back from a 2-0 half-time deficit to pinch a 2-2 draw. Joel Nikolic put the Zebras ahead on nine minutes with a simple finish before Danny Charalambous rounded the keeper before sliding into an open net for two.
Cue the Georgies comeback, as winger Matthew Oghanna sparked a second half revival. He scored the first before assisting Marty Mason for the second to steal a point and send them to the summit of the NPL 1 West ladder.
Brunswick City 1 (Turer) defeated by Moreland City 2 (Kose x 2) at Dunstan Reserve
The only three points on offer around the grounds this weekend in the NPL 1 West went Moreland City’s way as they triumphed over local rivals Brunswick City by a goal. The close fought affair saw Moreland’s Osman Kose bookend the match with two goals. The first of his brace came in just the second minute, as he reacted quickest to his own rebounded shot to slot home at the second time of asking. Ahmet Turer found an equaliser for last years strugglers Brunswick as he calmly chipped Moreland stopper Brandon Galgano in the first half.
Kose ensured the away support earned the bragging rights with a second half strike, courtesy of an inch perfect cross from Casey Thomas.
Whittlesea Ranges 0 drew with Ballarat Red Devils 0 at Epping Stadium
The first bore draw of the season saw Whittlesea Ranges and Ballarat Red Devils both pick up their first points of the season, in a game for the men between the sticks. Aaron Romein was in stellar form to maintain the Red Devil’s clean sheet, while Gian Tapia for Whittlesea was forced into a great save in stoppage time from Michael Trigger to preserve the point for his side.
FC Bulleen Lions 1 (Nishimoto) drew with Bendigo City 1 (Basha) at The Veneto Club
FC Bulleen Lions left it late, but they eventually grabbed a late equaliser, as they and Bendigo City shared the spoils to keep their short unbeaten run intact. The opener for Bendigo came in the second half as Godwill Basha – who was brought on in the later stages of the first half, made an impact almost immediately from kick-off in the second term, profiting from some lax defending to put the visitors 1-0 up. Takanori Nishimoto equalised in the 86th minute with an emphatic finish, before being denied a winner in injury time via some brilliance from the City keeper.